TCP / IP For Dummies - Softcover

Leiden, Candace; Wilensky, Marshall

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0470450606 ISBN 13: 9780470450604

Publisher: For Dummies, 2009

Synopsis

Packed with the latest information on TCP/IP standards and protocols

TCP/IP is a hot topic, because it's the glue that holds the Internet and the Web together, and network administrators need to stay on top of the latest developments. TCP/IP For Dummies, 6th Edition, is both an introduction to the basics for beginners as well as the perfect go-to resource for TCP/IP veterans.

The book includes the latest on Web protocols and new hardware, plus very timely information on how TCP/IP secures connectivity for blogging, vlogging, photoblogging, and social networking. Step-by-step instructions show you how to install and set up TCP/IP on clients and servers; build security with encryption, authentication, digital certificates, and signatures; handle new voice and mobile technologies, and much more.

• Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) is the de facto standard transmission medium worldwide for computer-to-computer communications; intranets, private internets, and the Internet are all built on TCP/IP
• The book shows you how to install and configure TCP/IP and its applications on clients and servers; explains intranets, extranets, and virtual private networks (VPNs); provides step-by-step information on building and enforcing security; and covers all the newest protocols
• You'll learn how to use encryption, authentication, digital certificates, and signatures to set up a secure Internet credit card transaction

Find practical security tips, a Quick Start Security Guide, and still more in this practical guide.

About this title

Review:

TCP/IP for Dummies aims to decode the protocols and executables that underlie the Internet and other networks that comply with its data communications standards. By combining how-to information that explains how to configure TCP/IP networking on various Microsoft Windows systems (including Windows 2000) with plenty of academic material on how Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and Internet Protocol (IP) work, the authors deliver considerable value to their readers. There ought to be TCP/IP configuration coverage of Linux and Mac OS, too--TCP/IP is, after all, ideal for heterogeneous networking--but the detailed information about the stack's workings offsets the hands-on shortcomings.

The authors spend a bit too long explaining elementary stuff about the Internet. Still, they unravel Internet phenomena very clearly and explain, for example, that FTP is a protocol, a service, and an application in complete TCP/IP suites. Dummies books are big on the use of analogies to explain technical subjects; this book uses food and a dinnerware set as an analogy for the TCP/IP software, and sometimes distracts from its educational objective by struggling to make the comparison fit. Regardless, the authors succeed in explaining an important and complex set of internetworking technologies to readers who have no prior TCP/IP experience. You'll appreciate the background that this book provides if you're planning to configure a small TCP/IP network or work your way toward more elaborate jobs. --David Wall

Topics covered: The TCP/IP stack and its applications, explained in terms that--while not oversimplified--will be understood easily by someone who has little networking knowledge. Fundamentals of networking, client-server communications, TCP/IP protocols (including SMTP, HTTP, POP3, FTP, and various routing protocols), Windows configuration procedures, and name resolution all get attention. A nice section explains IPv6 well.

From the Back Cover:

Keep your network up to date with the latest TCP/IP standards and protocols

Now that IPv4 and IPv6 have joined and coexist, TCP/IP administration and standards have had quite a makeover. This book helps you catch up! Learn how to handle blogs and social networks, and get the scoop on new Web protocols, wireless routers, updated hardware, new voice and mobile technologies, security procedures to defend against new threats, and a whole lot more.

• Stack 'em up — understand the TCP/IP layer stack and protocol stack

• Pick your system — configure TCP/IP on Windows 7, Windows 2008, Mac OS X, Linux, Unix, Windows Vista, or Windows XP

• Go wireless — set up a wireless router and network, configure TCP/IP for Wi-Fi, and handle security

• Safety's your business — learn to use encryption, authentication, digital certificates, and signatures, and set up secure credit card transactions

• From 4 to 6 — learn to use IPv6 solutions, build IPv6 addresses, and discover the advantages of dual protocol stacks

• All about e-mail — explore the various e-mail protocols and how to secure and configure clients and services

• Socialize — create connectivity for blogs, social networking sites, chats, and instant messaging

• Keep users happy — secure your network and sniff out problems

Open the book and find:

• Six steps to a complete TCP/IP configuration

• The pros and cons of trusted host files

• Common-sense best practices for network security

• How to configure DNS clients and servers

• Tips for managing cookies

• What to expect from a VoIP phone system

• How to set up and secure mobile IP

• Some different uses for TCP/IP

About this edition

• Publisher: For Dummies
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 0470450606
• ISBN 13: 9780470450604
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 6
• Number of pages: 464